Title

Author

Date of Conferral

2019

School

Education

Advisor

Billie Andersson

Abstract

Special education teacher attrition has been an ongoing problem for at least 3 decades. This study specifically focused on the attrition of special education teachers in South Carolina. Attrition can have a negative impact on student learning, making it important to identify the causes of attrition among special education teachers to lower attrition in the state and lessen the negative impact on student learning outcomes. The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine attrition whether career satisfaction, perceived administrative support, coping with job-related stress, and attitudes toward students are related to attrition in special education teachers in South Carolina. Bronfenbrenner's ecological theory served as the theoretical framework. In accordance with the study purpose, the research questions for this study assessed the relationship between career satisfaction, perceived administrative support, coping with job-related stress, attitudes toward students, and special education teachers' intent to remain in the field of special education. Data were collected via self-report survey responses from special education teachers from South Carolina and were analyzed thorough use of multinomial logistic regressions. The findings of the multinomial logistic regressions showed that career satisfaction and coping with job-related stress were significant predictors of intent to remain in special education. Perceived administrative support and attitude toward students were not significant predictors of intent to remain in special education. Implications include finding ways to reduce job-related stress for special education teachers. This study contributed to positive social change through the discovery of the reasons why special educators are leaving the field, which could lead to possible ways to alleviate attrition.